(Headline USA) Oregon voters already want to repeal a law decriminalizing drug use just three years after voting to enact it.
A new poll from Emerson College showed 56% of respondents in the state would rather undo the measure than leave it in place. When asked if they would favor a partial repeal over leaving the policy in place, 64% said yes.
Measure 110 was passed in 2020 by referendum and downgraded the penalty for the use of hard drugs, such as methamphetamine, heroin and cocaine.
As a result, drug abuse and overdoses have skyrocketed across the state, with fentanyl-related overdoses increasing by 210% since 2020, according to police.
Fifty-four percent of respondents claimed the policy has increased homelessness in their communities, while 50% said it decreased safety in their communities.
Overall, 58% of those polled said Oregon is headed in the wrong direction, while 42% said it’s going the right way.
The survey came just weeks after a report detailing how Portland residents were fleeing the city at record rates due to rising crime and homelessness. In fact, Portland lost 3% of its total population between 2020 and 2022, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Rampant crime has driven several businesses out of Portland as well. Walmart announced earlier this year that it would be shutting down all of its Portland locations due to constant theft and drug use in their stores.
“Theft is an issue,” Walmart CEO Doug McMillon told Breitbart at the time. “It’s higher than what it has historically been.”
He also called out government officials, arguing a “lax approach from prosecutors” would impact “prices and lead to store closures down the line.”
Even leftist singer John Mellencamp, a 1980’s rocker, admitted in a recent song that Portland has become unlivable.
“As I saw through the eyes of Portland one day, / There were so many homeless; they’d all gone astray. / They slept on the corners during the day,” read the lyrics of Mellencamp’s song, “The Eyes of Portland.”
